Vincent Thomas Bridge
|length= |width= (typical) |clearance= approximately |below= |traffic= 32,000 |open= November 15, 1963 |closed= |toll= |map_cue= |map_image= |map_text= |map_width= |coordinates= }} The Vincent Thomas Bridge is a long suspension bridge crossing the Los Angeles Harbor in the U.S. state of California, linking San Pedro, Los Angeles, with Terminal Island. The bridge is signed as part of State Route 47. It is named for California Assemblyman Vincent Thomas of San Pedro. It is the third longest suspension bridge in California. It is also the bridge with the 76th longest span in the world. The clear height of the navigation channel is approximately 185 ft.CalTrans Vincent Thomas Bridge Upgrade Project contract, 1998 http://www.dot.ca.gov/hq/esc/tollbridge/Vin-Thom/1381U4/ContInfo.html History and description The bridge was built to replace the ferries that connected San Pedro and Terminal Island, in anticipation of increased traffic volume accompanying growth of the port. State legislator Vincent Thomas, representing San Pedro, was the bridge's champion. A special act of the legislatureConcurrent Resolution 131. was required in order to name the bridge after Thomas while he was still in office. Throughout the bridge's construction and in the early years after its opening, it was derided as a "bridge to nowhere." In the 1970s, however, its importance drastically increased as the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach displaced those of the San Francisco Bay Area as the principal port on the U.S. West Coast. Today, the Vincent Thomas Bridge carries a considerable volume of truck traffic from the southernmost slips of the Port of Los Angeles, in San Pedro, onto the Terminal Island Freeway and eventually to the southern end of the Long Beach Freeway; from there, freight goes from the port complex to the rail yards of East Los Angeles and the Inland Empire. When the bridge opened in 1963, the toll was 25 cents in each direction. In 1983, the toll increased to 50 cents for westbound traffic but became free for eastbound traffic. By 2000, the Vincent Thomas Bridge was one of only two toll bridges remaining in Southern California (the other being the San Diego-Coronado Bridge in San Diego), during which year tolls on the Vincent Thomas Bridge were eliminated. After the San Diego-Coronado Bridge stopped collecting tolls in 2002, the California Department of Transportation was able to devolve authority over toll bridges to the Bay Area Toll Authority in June 2005. In January 2005, after 17 years of planning and fundraising, the bridge was illuminated with blue LED lights, powered by solar panels. There are 160 lights on the bridge and it is the first combined use of solar power and LEDs in a bridge lighting installation. The lights operate from dusk to midnight to minimize impact on wildlife. On October 26, 1990, 1964 Olympic diving bronze medalist Larry Andreasen was killed jumping from the west tower of the bridge in an attempt to set a record.Wallechinsky, David (2004). The Complete Book of the Summer Olympics, Toronto: Sport Classic Books. ISBN 1-894963-34-2 The Catalina Terminal (Berth 95), the location for all of San Pedro's departing ferries and helicopters to Santa Catalina Island, is located underneath the western part of the bridge. In popular culture The bridge is referenced in the song Paper Cunts off of the 2009 album Cryptomnesia (album) by El Grupo Nuevo de Omar Rodriguez Lopez. "The earth is flat when your day is night/ all of a sudden they bleach your skin/ dumping from the Vincent Thomas bridge/ The case ain't settled this place ain't fit/ has the donor started asking questions yet?" The bridge is featured in the climax of the movie Gone in 60 Seconds, starring Nicolas Cage, and in a scene of the 2000 movie Charlie's Angels where Cameron Diaz and Crispin Glover face off in two racecars. The bridge was also featured in the main chase scene of the original Gone in 60 Seconds (1974) starred and produced by H.B. Halicki. The bridge appears in an episode of CHiPs titled "Taking Its Toll". The bridge is also seen in a scene in National Security . The film To Live and Die in L.A., released in 1985, makes extensive use of the bridge. Early in the film, Richard Chance (William Petersen), on a bet, jumps off the bridge using a safety line. The bridge can be seen in the background from the house of Chance's girlfriend/informant Ruth Lanier (Darlanne Fluegel). During the end credits, a continuous shot shows the bridge being crossed in the eastbound direction. The bridge was occasionally visible in opening scenes of the television show The Love Boat, as Princess Lines' Los Angeles passenger terminal was (and is) located near the bridge. The bridge can also be seen in the U.S. TV series Trapper John, M.D.. Although the show was set in San Francisco at the fictitious San Francisco Memorial Hospital, the hospital used for exterior shots was the Little Company of Mary Hospital on 7th Street in San Pedro, CA, from which the Vincent Thomas Bridge can be seen. The bridge appears in some shots as a "faux Golden Gate Bridge" despite its obvious differences in color and design. The bridge is featured in scenes throughout the movie "Shelter", largely set in San Pedro, Calif. The shots from the main character's house include a view of the bridge and Terminal Island/Port of Los Angeles/Port of Long Beach. The bridge was also featured in an episode of America's Toughest Jobs where the contestants each had to work doing various repairs to the bridge. References External links * de:Vincent Thomas Bridge es:Puente Vincent Thomas pt:Ponte Vincent Thomas Category:Bridges in California Category:Suspension bridges in the United States Category:Bridges completed in 1963 Category:Visitor attractions in Long Beach, California Category:Towers in California